This still image obtained September 10, 2012, from IntelCenter shows Ayman al-Zawahiri speaking from an undisclosed location.
IntelCenter / AFP via Getty Images
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IntelCenter / AFP via Getty Images
This still image obtained September 10, 2012, from IntelCenter shows Ayman al-Zawahiri speaking from an undisclosed location.
IntelCenter / AFP via Getty Images
One of the last times al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri stood on the center stage was some 40 years ago, when international media captured his praises from a cage in the country. behind the Egyptian courtroom.
The cameras caught him screaming about the torture he and other prisoners suffered at the hands of Egyptian jailers. He started the group chanting: “We are Muslims. We are Muslims.”
Zawahiri’s prison time in Egypt not only pitted him against the regime there, but also marked the beginning of a lifelong grudge against the US.
When he eventually joined forces with Osama bin Laden, he overcame that feud, but it ended with al-Zawahiri on Sunday local time in Afghanistan after a drone of The US fired two hellfire missiles at a safe house in Kabul, killing him.
President Biden on Monday noted that al-Zawahiri was Osama bin Laden’s deputy on 9/11 and that he was “deeply involved in the plan.”
“For decades he was the mastermind behind attacks against Americans,” Biden added, noting the 2000 USS Cole attack and the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya. and Tanzania.
Biden also detailed al-Zawahiri’s role in leading al-Qaida since bin Laden was killed by US forces in 2011, including calling on followers in recent weeks to attack the US. and allies.
Bruce Hoffman, director of the Center for Peace and Security Studies at Georgetown University, said in 2011 that although al-Zawahiri had a reputation for being tough and dogmatic, he could emerge as one. leader even stronger than bin Laden.
“Unlike bin Laden, he has been recognized as a fleece-dyed terrorist since he was a teenager,” said Hoffman. “OK, he’s not as cinematic as bin Laden. He lacks bin Laden’s charisma. He doesn’t have bin Laden’s pompous voice, but he’s still a very powerful figure in the movement. “
Bin Laden spoke of creating the basis for a broader Islamic movement as if it were a mantra. He wanted an organization that didn’t need him to exist. And al-Zawahiri has kept it going for a decade since bin Laden’s death.
A version of this profile, written by Dina Temple-Raston, first appeared on NPR in May 3, 2011.
